Relatives. Life, love, art and death of Neanderthals. Syks R.R.

Rebecca Ragg Sykes, a British scientist with great experience in the field of the Paleolithic archeology, shows Neanderthals in the New World, discarding stereotypical ideas about the savages dressed in rags walking in the ice desert. They appear before us in the curious experts of their world, inventive and easily adapting to surrounding conditions. Neanderthals lived not only in the tundra and steppes, but also in dense forests, and at the Mediterranean Sea. They successfully survived during large -scale climatic shocks for more than 300,000 years. Although our appearance has never encountered such serious threats, we are convinced of our exclusivity.

Meanwhile, we have a lot of DNA of Neanderthals, and much of what determines us was inherent in them: planning, cooperation, altruism, skill, a sense of beautiful, imagination, and possibly even a desire to win death. Only by understanding Neanderthals, can we truly understand ourselves.